Backcountry Ski at Powder Creek Lodge

Eighteen thousand acres of backcountry ski terrain in the Purcell Mountains, British Columbia just for you and your friends. Bonus an amazing wilderness lodge reserved just for you and your friends for a week.

Ask most people about the mountains of eastern British Columbia and they'll likely think you mean the Canadian Rockies. But mention the Purcell Mountains and you're more than likely to get a blank stare back at you. And that's a good thing.

The Purcell Mountains in British Columbia run parallel to the Canadian Rockies to the west. They are little known outside of the Northwest. But it is a huge mountain range with a number of backcountry huts that you can reserve in the winter to access some of the best backcountry terrain in North America.

Powder Creek Lodge is one of those lodges, and while the name wasn't given because of the amazing powder skiing that can be had there, it might as well have been. The lodge is accessed via helicopter only. You are dropped off at the beginning of the week, along with your friends, your skis, your food, and since this is Canada, your beer.

The rest is up to you. How much vertical do you want to get in a day. Three thousand? Five? Ten? What kind of terrain do you want to ski? Trees? Check. Steeps? Check. Wide open powder runs? Check. Too many options for one week, but that is also a good thing.

The lodge is reserved on a weekly basis in winter. It's privately owned and you need to pay to stay there. It holds up to 14 people and can be catered and guided or self-catered and self-guided.

Keep in mind this is a true wilderness experience. You must know how to travel safely in avalanche terrain and have all the necessary avalanche safety gear and backcounty ski gear.

But it will be you and your closest friends with oodles of acres of freshies all tor yourselves. Check it all out here, www.powdercreeklodge.com/.

Pack List

Touring ski setup

Skins

Avalanche transceiver

Avalanche probe

Snow shovel

Backpack

Camera

Beer

Food

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How to Get There

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Stephen is a Seattle-based outdoor adventure, lifestyle, and landscape photographer. He has worked with companies in the outdoor industry for over 15 years as well as some of the biggest national magazines in the adventure world. He travels and shoots for his clients in the western U.S., Alaska, and internationally, but is completely happy to shoot in his backyard mountains in the Pacific Northwest.